The present invention relates to installation of floor coverings and, more particularly, to a tool for raising and lifting furniture, partitions or like during the installation of the flooring.
During the installation of carpet, ceramic tile or the like in existing buildings where furniture, especially modular partitions, needs to be moved, the installer is faced with a recurring furniture moving dilemma. The installer may either move the furniture, partitions or the like by hand to one side of the room, install the carpet on that side of the room and move the furniture back onto the new flooring, install the remainder of the flooring and reposition the furniture. Another way is to raise the furniture, partitions or the like at its original position so that flooring may be positioned underneath the furniture, partition or the like.
A useful device for raising and lowering furniture, partitions or the like is illustrated in my U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,443, the specification and drawings of which are herein expressly incorporated by reference. This patent illustrates a lifting device for raising and lowering furniture, partitions or the like. While this invention provides the art with a satisfactory device for raising and lowering furniture, partitions or the like, designers continue to strive to improve the art.
Also, the following U.S. patents illustrate various types of lifting devices. The U.S. Pat. Nos. are:66,170; 829,344; 2,469,670; 2,536,550; 2,786,649; 2,786,650; 2,910,270; 3,081,066; 3,426,752; 3,662,994; 4,194,726.
The present invention provides the art with an improved floor covering installation tool which lifts partitions, furniture or the like. The present invention enables installers to position flooring underneath furniture, partitions or the like without necessitating removal of the furniture from its original position within the room receiving the floor covering.
The present invention also provides a removable abutment member which enables the device to lift partitions or the like with a single planar surface or with two or more planar surfaces, such as a corner of a partition. The invention is also provided with movable lifting brackets to enable multi-positioning of the brackets with respect to the object to be lifted and also to move from one abutment member to the next. The present invention also includes a live current indicator to test for live current in the object to be lifted.
From the subsequent description and the appended claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art.